


Resident Redhead

by storybuyer



Category: Leverage, The Librarians (TV 2014)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/M, Valentine's Day
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-02-18
Updated: 2016-02-18
Packaged: 2018-05-21 12:08:15
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,772
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6051067
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/storybuyer/pseuds/storybuyer
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>An AU where Eliot and Cassandra have been dating for a while. Super late for Valentine's Day, but here it is!</p>
            </blockquote>





	Resident Redhead

**Author's Note:**

> This is super super late for Valentine's Day, but I couldn't resist! I've also been re-watching Leverage, so this sort of a character study as well. Enjoy!

Nate Ford is an observant man. Often enough times, his life depended on his ability to observe. And when his life didn't depend on it, he liked to practice. So he observed his team.You would think that in the years that he's known them, there would nothing new, but these people were surprising. 

Hardison, for instance, was like the oil that kept the machine running. Other than being the technical expert, he kept the kitchens, medical cabinets, and bank accounts well stocked and up to date. Nate hasn't had to do his taxes since he met him.

Parker, despite her craziness, did have a routine, especially when it came to her rigs. The blonde was meticulous about her rigs. Before a con, no matter if she needed them or not, she would go over each rig individually, taking hours to make sure everyone was just right. She used to do it alone, but soon moved the operation in the open, sitting quietly while the others did their pre-con preparations around her.

Sophie liked to shop. Not for the reasons that she led them to believe, although she did love shoes almost as much as she loved fine art. Sophie liked to shop because she was never anybody else when she shopped. That is, she didn't have to pretend. Sophie loved acting, but Nate noticed that sometimes she just liked to be herself.

Eliot was the hardest to understand, since he was more likely to notice when Nate was observing him. Not that Nate let that stop him. Eliot was an emotional person, and that was what gave him away most of the time. After their covers were blown in Boston, one of the first suggestions for a new HQ was New York. Sophie was all for the idea, Parker didn't really care, but Eliot immediately vetoed the idea and refused to tell anybody why. Then, while they were laying low, he spent a good chunk of time in New York. Nate didn't particularly care, but it didn't mean that he wasn't curious.  
_________________________________________

Jenkins didn't make a habit of watching the group that invaded his home. But as time passed he's learned the quirks and habits of the various Librarians.

Ezekial was a self proclaimed expert in technology, but Jenkins often found books about coding and hardware buried under the various object on his desk.

Stone, though secretive, was actually the easiest Librarian to read, simply loving art wholeheartedly.

Cassandra, on the other hand, was constantly moving and changing. One thing that Jenkins had remembered with clarity was how nervous she was to move to Portland. On her moving day, she nervously checked her phone, and once ran outside for a phone call. When she returned from the call, the nervousness was gone and she threw herself wholeheartedly into the move. Jenkins didn't think much of it, there were other things to worry about. 

______________________________________

Sometime after the team moved to Portland, Eliot suddenly became absorbed within his phone. He ran his hand through his hair and made expressions that they've only seen before on missions, when he was particularly worried. Nate thought about asking Hardison to see who he was talking too, then rejected it. Eliot would never trust them again, and it wasn't really important. Eliot eventually stepped outside to make a call, and when he came back he seemed relatively normal.  
________________________________________

It was Valentine's Day and Cassandra was nowhere to be found. The Annex was decorated, and there were small gifts for everyone, but the redhead herself was absent ,and she wasn't answering her phone. Eve was worried, and Ezekial offered to trace her cellphone, while Stone insisted they should at least check her apartment first.  
________________________________________

"Eliot's gone." Parker announced this dropping next to Hardison on the couch. Nate looked up from his coffee, then checked the time. It was 10, and Eliot usually arrived by 9. "If he's gone, I guess we have to find him."  
________________________________________

She wasn't in her apartment, but Ezekial traced her phone to a small park nearby.

Nate let Hardison trace Eliot to a small park in the city, and though he planned on going in alone, they all insisted on coming along.  
________________________________________

Despite it being a little cooler outside, the park was still beautiful. The large trees, and small gazebos scattered around it made it a quiet place to spend the day. Which is why Eliot chose it for Valentine's Day. He didn't get to see Cassandra often, first because of his work schedule, then because of her's. When she told him she was moving to Portland, he was happy. And terrified. Anybody around him was in danger, and as much as he tried to keep his work and dating life separate, Hardison was so damn nosy. Eliot looked over at Cassandra. They had grabbed some coffee on the way over, and she was drinking it. He wrapped an arm around her waist and she beamed at him. Right now, nothing mattered but them.  
________________________________________

They were on a small bridge overlooking the duck pond, their coffees in a trash can 39 yards away. She was telling him about the latest case she went on, minus the magic of course. Eliot laughed when she told him about something Ezekial did, and she took the moment to observe him. After realizing she was watching him, he stared back at her. " What?" She squeezed the hand that she was holding. "Nothing. I just love you." He let go of her hand and wrapped her in a tight hug, and she hugged him back with just as much force. " I love you too."  
________________________________________

Eve spotted Cassandra first, and immediately tried to herd the rest of the group back, but it was too late. Jones was first, letting out a loud whistle. Cassandra turned immediately at the noise, still wrapped up in the mystery guy's arms. "Ezekial?" They all jogged across the field to where she was standing, and she met them. " What are you doing here?"

While Cassandra was talking to the group that came to see her, Eliot had spotted his team making their way over. Hardison reached him first, and clapped him on the back. "Man, this is where you been disappearing too." Eliot moved away from him. " Come on, stop it." Sophie and Nate arrived by now, and Sophie smiled at him. "You could have told us Eliot, you didn't have to keep her a secret." Eliot looked over his shoulder at Cassandra. "It was the only way I knew how to protect her.".  
________________________________________

" Are you going to introduce us?" They were several minutes into Ezekiel teasing Cassandra when Eve finally decided to intervene. Flynn and Stone had been admiring the architecture of a nearby gazebo, but came over when they heard Eve. " Oh, right. Wait here." Cassandra turned to where Eliot was standing began walking over.

Nate spots Cassandra first. " Are you going to introduce us?" Eliot moved away from where he was talking to Hardison and faced them. " She's not like us. Just, don't research her like one of our marks or something." With that he walked to meet her.

Cassandra reached him first, and she played with her hands nervously. " My team want to meet you." Eliot looked over her shoulder to the group watching them. " That's a coincidence, so does mine." She glanced up at him and smiled. " We should call them over then." He nodded and she turned and waved her team over. Looking over at Nate, Eliot nodded and they began to head over.

The Librarians reached them first, and surprisingly Eliot spoke. "Jake?" The man in question grinned and hugged Eliot. " I didn't know this was where you went man. Cassandra, you didn't tell me you were dating my cousin!" The redhead rolled her eyes. "You didn't tell me you had a cousin.You know there are at least seven people that look exactly like you in the world, so I just assumed that was the case." Eliot chuckled and wrapped an arm around her waist. By now Eliot's crew had reached them, and to avoid confusion, they made the introductions brief. 

Eliot kept his arm around Cassandra has he pointed to each of his team members. "Cass, this is Nate, Sophie, Parker, and Hardison." Cassandra waved and smiled shyly. "Hey man, why'd introduce me last?" " Hardison, not now." "Whatever man."

Cassandra decided to adopt the same method as Eliot when she made her introductions. "Eliot, meet Eve, Flynn, and Ezekiel. I guess you already know Stone." Eliot waved vaguely, and promptly began steering Cassandra to where his car was parked. " It was nice meeting you all, but we have plans and such so..." The couple broke into a run and left the two groups facing each other awkwardly. Flynn cleared his throat. " Well, I guess we did interrupt their Valentine's Day." Everyone nodded and shuffled awkwardly. Sophie suddenly slapped Nate's arm. "Our reservations!" She dragged Nate out of the park, and Ezekiel simply walked off saying something about a Russian nurse he met. That left Eve, Stone, Parker, Flynn and Hardison. After a few moments Hardison nudged Parker. " If we want to make it to Rome, we got to leave now." Parker nodded and turned to the remaining two people. " Goodbye." As she walked off with Hardison, they could hear her faintly. "Did I do that right?" "Yes, you did."  
________________________________________

Jenkins looked up as Eve and Flynn entered the Annex. The two looked conflicted, but the noticeable absence of the other interlopers caught his attention. "Did you find Ms.Cillian, or did you manage to lose the rest of the brood?" Eve rolled her eyes and turned to him as Flynn disappeared into the Library. "Cassandra is with her boyfriend, and the rest of them kind of scattered. Did you know Stone has a cousin that looks exactly like him?" Jenkins raised his hand to pause her speaking. "Colonel, my tea is done, and seeing as it is relatively quiet, I am going to take this day to relax. I suggest you do the same." Leaving Eve looking reasonably insulted, Jenkins retreated to his lab smirking. If they had just asked him, he would have told them about Cassandra. She was a scientific genius, but horrible at keeping secrets. Jenkins knew about Eliot months ago. He entered his lab and looked at the vintage globe on his work table, and the small card beside it. Setting down his mug, he picked up the card. It was simple, with three words written in red lettering.

" Happy Valentine's Day."

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you liked it! Cassandra loves all holidays, and constantly buys gifts for everyone. Parker and Hardison are going to Rome so she can test some rigs in the Coliseum, Nate and Sophie don't really have reservations, they were just trying to be nice. Stone went to a museum, and Cassandra and Eliot went to his place to be all cute together. Please leave a comment and tell me what you thought about it!!


End file.
